The Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) United States Fire Administration (USFA) has announced a number of changes to the Executive Fire Officer Program (EFOP). As a result of an evaluation conducted last year, process changes had been made during the 1st quarter of Fiscal Year 2001(FY 01) (October 1, 2000, through September 30, 2001). Other revisions will be made over the next two years. A summary of the most notable changes follows.
� Target Audience. The EFOP target audience will largely remain the same. However, beginning in FY 02, there will be a “Key Leaders” participation component in which a limited number of nonexecutive-level applicants serving in “key leadership” positions will be considered for the program.
� Four-Year Core Curriculum. A new executive level curriculum devoted to risk reduction and prevention will be offered beginning in FY 03. This curriculum will affect EFOP participants who enter the program in FY 01 and later.
� Academic Requirement. Beginning October 1, 2009, all applicants must possess a minimum of a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited college or university. This requirement is consistent with the International Association of Fire Chiefs “Chief Fire Officer Professional Designation” program.
A variety of other changes have been made or will be enacted to improve the completion of Applied Research Projects, the EFOP Graduate Symposium, existing courses within the EFOP, and other programmatic areas. Additional information is available from the Web site
